Various fishery regulating authorities, such as the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) in the United States, require the reporting of fisheries dependent data from fishers such as a commercial fisherman. This data may be collected directly from the fisher or fishing vessel or from a first receiver (e.g., the dock or dealer) that first receives the fish from the fisher or vessel. Fisheries dependent data may include, for example, the name of the fisher, the identification of the vessel, the species and amount of fish brought abroad, the date, time, and location of the catch, and the fishery conditions, such as water temperature, depth, and salinity at the time the fish are brought aboard the fishing vessel. Fishers and/or first receivers may use electronic devices to record this fisheries dependent data and/or report the fishery dependent data to a government fisheries database. Fishers may also save and report Annual Catch Entitlement (ACE) data.
Certain fisheries dependent data is considered proprietary to the fisher who generated the data and the confidentiality rights of the fisher are protected, for example, under 50 C.F.R. 229.11 and 50 C.F.R. 600.405-600.425. The proprietary nature of fisheries dependent data and the need to protect confidentiality rights of the fishers is often at odds with the use of this data downstream by industry members, such as processors, wholesalers, retailers, restaurants, and fishery researchers. The proprietary fisheries dependent data may be helpful, for example, to trace a fish product back through a supply chain to identify the origins of the fish product (e.g., where the fish was caught and the methods used to catch the fish). The proprietary fisheries dependent data may also be helpful for supply chain entities, as the product is sold down the supply chain, to verify the authenticity of supply chain data identifying the fish product and its source. The traceability and verification of seafood products is becoming a legal and commercial necessity, but the protection of the proprietary information of the fishers, as well as the supply chain entities, is a significant challenge to performing these traceability and verification functions. The globalization of trade and the lack of international standards have also presented challenges to traceability and verification of seafood products.